I-15 near Point of the Mountain in Lehi is pictured on Sunday, Feb. 4, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)
When Republican Rep. Kera Birkeland’s 16-year-old daughter drove from a Halloween party in Layton to her home in Morgan, she got a $200 ticket. She was traveling with friends who were minors and none of them had their driver’s license for more than six months.
It’s a law that many parents allow their children to break, Birkeland said, for safety or practicality. But the rule may change with a bill she’s sponsoring this session.
HB351 , titled Driving by Minors Amendments, would update the state code to allow drivers under 18 years old to drive one passenger who is a minor and not an immediate family member before the currently required six-month wait ends.
The House voted 46-24 to pass the legislation. The Senate will now consider it.
GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
“It’s great to have laws on the books that defend and protect kids,” Birkeland said to the House on Tuesday. “It’s more important to have practical laws on the books that defend and protect kids.”